This is the first time I've ever written any type of anything. I've never done any type of creative writing like most of you have, unless you count me writing a "book" when I was in elementary school about penguins... tbh that one wasn't any good either haha. I have a degree in a science so the grammar is most likely sub par at best, so I'll apologize for that ahead of time. If you need a formal lab write up I got that, this is a very new different type of experiment for me. If it's any good that'd make my day. We can't be good at everything, but at least I can say I tried and put forth valiant effort!

It's been a really long day at work for the two of them and its finally time to forget and leave everything behind to just take the evening to relax. Bridget is curled up on the couch reading the latest Psychology Today magazine while Franky is frantically cooking up a storm in the kitchen. These normal weeknight activities for the two always ends up in relentless teasing:

"Gidge, I don't understand how you can possibly enjoy reading some article, probably written by some wrinkly old man that has hair coming out of his ears, about the latest and greatest way to get inside people's heads. Isn't it always the same? I mean even I know the answer to the age-old question is gasp talking." She says with a smirk followed by a wink with Bridget replying "Thanks baby, it's nice to know you think that I'm going to end up wrinkly with hair coming out of my ears writing mundane articles in the near future."

"Hey now! You know I only mean it with the utmost love and affection" wiggling her eyebrows.

"I don't understand how you can stand over a stove watching water boil… not to mention all of the steps it takes to make whatever delicious meal you are spoiling me with that night. Now how is that relaxing? Miss one step? You're screwed. Forget an ingredient? You're screwed. Add to much of something? you're screwed. Put the timer on for too long? You're screwed and we have a fire on our hands to deal with. Not exactly my idea of relaxing."

Then its Franky's turn again "Hey now, let's not take your culinary insecurities out on me and my impeccable cooking abilities. I mean it's not my fault I'm a fucking culinary goddess." Franky wiggling her eyebrows with both of them ending up laughing. Every time it always ends up with Bridget conceding "Okay okay baby, I guess that this is an agree to disagree type of situation."

Tonight though is much different than the norm. Both are doing their "designated" activities, but the vibe is much different. Instead of the happy back and forth banter and laughing there is a subtle but noticeable difference; Bridget can feel it. She tries to rack her head to think of something, anything that could have contributed to this dreary mood, coming up with nothing. The only way to find out is to ask, communication and transparency was something they agreed early on in their relationship was mandatory.

Bridget finally asks "Hey, baby?" with Franky grunting in acknowledgement, she follows "is everything ok?"

"Of course, Gidge. Why wouldn't it be?"

That was exactly what Bridget expecting. "Right, I know that you say that, but tonight that answer isn't true, is it? I know you, I can feel when something is off, you know I can. Im having a strong feeling you are leaving something out" she didn't want Franky to get defensive and shut down so quickly adds "You know I love you and you can tell me anything. Baby, please, what's going on inside of that mind of yours?"

Bridget waits hesitantly knowing that she will either acknowledge and share what is going on or she'll completely shut down and repeat her previous reply. She was hoping, no begging, that she would let her walls down. They spend what seems like forever staring at each other and then she sees it, Franky's oh so emotional eyes confirm Bridget's suspicion. Her eyes were welling with tears, not falling, but were full to the brim.

Franky turns around and Bridget's heart drops seeing those brilliant green eyes turn away from her. She just wants to help and it kills her that Franky is retreating back into her shell. Then she sees the brunette walk over to the stove turning off the burners followed by her side step over to the oven while she stops the preheating. Bridget lets out a sigh of relief that Franky is planning on talking to her, but along with the sigh comes an overwhelming feeling of concern. If it was a normal talk Bridget would just go over to sit at the bar and talk while Franky continued making dinner, but this wasn't a normal talk, a normal talk didn't involve halting dinner completely, turning off all appliances that could be dangerous if left unattended, this was different. This means that Franky did indeed have something wrong, her walls crumbled and she was ready to talk, these actions were just setting the environment to do so. The last thing she wants is to feel like shit and then burn the house down.

She let out a little huff, walked over to the where Bridget was perched on the couch, and stood there for a moment looking down into the bright blue eyes staring up at her. Franky then sat down next to her and as she sat the smaller woman shifted to make room for her. Once Franky sat, Bridget arranged herself so there was room on her lap for Franky's head. Franky looked at her hesitantly then finally turned her body and placed her head in her lap. She couldn't face looking into Bridget's eyes so she compromised and turned on her side to where she was looking towards the tv, not up at Bridget. They sat in that position for a few minutes but Bridget didn't push Franky to talk.

Finally, after fifteen minutes had passed she decided to gently prod her. "Franky, baby, can you please talk to me? I understand if you don't want to, but I really want to know what is going on."

Franky takes a deep breath, holds it, and then exhales trying to compose herself. She had spent so long not knowing how to talk about how she was feeling, it only made it that much harder for her to collect her thoughts and formulate them into coherent phrases that would accurately convey those emotions. Bridget could feel Franky trying to psych herself up to talk, so she gently urged her by softly rubbing circles on her side with one hand and alternated caressing her face hand running her fingers through the dark hair with the other.

After leaning over and placing a gentle kiss on the top of Franky's head, she was motivated to start talking. "Gidge I feel like I'm a broken record and you're going to get tired of listening to me over and over, so I just keep these things to myself."

Bridget crinkled her nose, "Honey, I will always be here to listen to you no matter what you have to talk about."

"Yeah, Yeah Gidge, I know which only makes it harder. It can be hard to talk to you since you're so confident in yourself all the time. It makes me feel weak."

Bridget was confused, "I want it to be easy for you to talk to me and I'm sorry if I've done something to make you feel like you can't. And you're wrong, I am not confident in myself all the time. We all have our days baby, sometimes I feel like a thousand bucks and other days I feel like shit. That's how it is for most people."

Franky's eyes well up "I know that Gidge, I know that everyone has their good and bad days. It's hard for me though. My good days are bad days."

Bridget can't wrap her head around what Franky is saying. "Hon, you lost me there. What do you mean when you say your good days are bad days?"

Franky lets out a breath she hadn't realized she had been holding. "That's one of the reasons it's hard for me to explain how this feels. Every time I have a good day my mind contorts it. I hear you tell me over and over that I am worthy of good things happening to me, but I can't bring myself to believe that. I don't deserve the good days, so in my mind I end up making them bad."

The blonde looks down encouraging the younger woman to lay on her back to look at her face, after a few efforts she finally concedes and turns over. Bridget's heart drops as she sees the tears streaming down her face. "Oh baby" she says as she looks into her emerald eyes.

"No, no, don't do that. Don't feel bad for me. I don't deserve any of this. I don't deserve you. How you treat me, I just can't. You deserve so much better, I'm an excon and have done so many terrible things. You always say that I've done my time, but that doesn't change a damn thing. All that means is that I sat in a box. I was put in time out. Does that make what I did ok? No of course not. Does that neutralize the action? Do something bad, get put in time out, everything is better, no more repercussions? No. There is nothing I can do that can change what I've done and I have to live with that. I have done really bad things."

The smaller woman stroked the dark hair and wiped some of the tears away "Franky I know it doesn't make what you did right, but" an interruption comes from the woman lying in her lap, "No buts, the things I've done, people I've hurt, stuff I've said. That makes me unworthy anything good, especially not you. You are pure, I am tainted, and that's just how it is. You deserve someone that doesn't have a tainted soul."

Bridget refutes, "You are absolutely wrong. Your soul isn't tainted. I want you. I need you. I love you. If you say I deserve the best then the best for me is you."

Tears continue to stream down the brunette's face "See? I shouldn't get these kind words. I don't deserve your love. I never will. No matter how much I repent I will still be bad."

Bridget's voice cracks, "Jesus love, Franky you are so good. Yes, you might have done bad things and they won't go away, but you have so many other things in your life that make you good."

Franky looking defeated replies, "See? This is why I feel like a broken record. You keep on saying these loving things. That I'm kind, loving, caring, and no matter how many times you say it my brain can't turn off the mantra repeating over and over 'you're no good and you deserve nothing good' and I'm not sure if I ever will."

By this point Bridget's tears are dangerously close to dropping off her chin onto Franky's face. She lets out a noise between a huff and sob, "God Franky, I love you so much and it breaks my heart that you feel like this. If you feel like you're a broken record then I'm one too, I will never stop telling you how good of a person you are. Every time you say your bad once I'll respond you're good twice. I want, no I need, you to believe me. If I could show you an ounce of how I feel about you you would see that you are good, so good."

Franky's tears had finally started to subside and she takes a deep breath in. This breath is much easier to take than it was before they sat and started talking. Franky's eyes sparkle as she looks back up into blue. Her mind tells her one thing, but when she looks into Bridget's eyes, her face, her smile, they all show overwhelming and unconditional love.

"Baby I know it's not easy to believe me when you've been told the opposite your whole life, that you are a bad person, but fuck them all. I'm the only one that's right, and will be the only one that ever is right" with that said Franky lets out a small laugh.

Bridget smiles even bigger seeing that Franky's mood has lifted. "Thanks babe. You're always right. Even when you're not right and I'm right I'll still let you be right. Except when it comes to my kitchen, then I'm always right and you'll keep your grubby little hands off of everything."

With that Bridget returns the laugh along with a little slap. "Hey now, don't start getting cheeky with me." A dramatic yelp escapes Franky's lips and she jumps up off the couch. "I'll get you for that"

Bridget replies suggestively, "Oh, I hope you will!" she says with the biggest smirk, "Now better get back to making dinner or I'm going to have to finish it."

Franky miserably failed at trying to put on a serious face, "Oi woman! Stay out of my kitchen this is a Gidget free zone." She throws up her arms and forms an X, "No Gidgets allowed. I don't want you fucking up our dinner and make me go hungry." Bridget is happy to see Franky's playful side again.

Before Franky turns the burners back on and preheats the oven and Bridget returns to her article, Bridget has one last point to make. She starts off joking, "I'm ravenous babe, don't burn my dinner or else I'll have to find something else to eat."

Franky replies without turning around, "Jeez! Keep your pants on" then quickly revised provocatively, "well I mean I'd rather you not, but don't worry even if I burn the food I will always have something else for you to eat."

Bridget can hear the smirk and feels relieved, and not to mention aroused. Then shouts "Hey another thing"

"Jesus woman! how am I supposed to cook when you keep talking to me Gidge? What do you wanna harass me about this time?" a shout replies from the kitchen.

Responding in a softer voice, "I love you and you are a good person. I'm going to tell you and show you how good you are everyday until you believe me. No matter how long it takes."

Then the very Franky reply comes, "Now I like the sound of that. You can start after dinner, right? I'm down for some dessert!" Bridget erupts in laughter. Only Franky can turn from a squishy sentimental puppy to a cheeky minx.

After Bridget gets a control on her laughter she hears a heartfelt voice respond, "But in all seriousness Gidge, I love you so much and don't know what I'd do without your encouragement and support."

After the long heart felt conversation, Bridget feels satisfied with the resolution. She would keep her promise no doubt. She would go to any and every length to make Franky feel loved and she would find ways to get her to believe she's a good person if that was the last thing she did.

I left this open so it could be a one shot or I have ideas for additional chapters that I could add to it. Let me know if I should keep going or just find another hobby. Please be brutally honest, I can take it. Reviews are much appreciated. Thanks for reading!

xM